It has been 20 years since Concorde was retired on October 24, 2003, after its last journey between New York and London. From its first commercial flight, on 01/21/1976 and for 27 years, Concorde transported almost four million people and carried out 50 thousand supersonic flights. However, high operating costs, high fares and a serious plane crash, among other factors, led to the closure of the first commercial plane to exceed the speed of sound.
The (privileged) supersonic passengers were nostalgic for these flights, which were carried out by 14 Concordes. The Concorde flew at 2,200 km/h per hour - almost twice the speed of sound - at an altitude of 18,000 meters. Thus, it was able to fly between Paris and New York in just 3h45min, allowing the passenger, depending on the time zones, to "arrive in New York before leaving Paris".
Despite the long passage of time since the last flight, commercial supersonics will be back. They will be produced by a startup, whose purpose is to reactivate supersonic commercial aviation, in a safer, more economical and more sustainable way. This new technological challenge has as its protagonist the startup Boom Supersonic , a manufacturing company based in Colorado, USA that is developing the “ Overture Supersonic ” aircraft project.
The first plane is expected to leave the factory in 2026 and by 2029 Boom Supersonic intends to start supersonic commercial flights. Boom's current timeline targets a first flight in 2027 and certification of the aircraft in 2029, which would have it ready to enter service shortly thereafter.
According to the CEO of Boom Supersonic, there is a challenge to be overcome: democratizing access to supersonic commercial aviation, as Concorde flights were elitist. "We set out with a very big and audacious goal of creating the first supersonic plane in which tens of millions of people can fly," told Blake Scholl, founder and CEO of Boom Supersonic, to CNN. "Supersonic travel, in my opinion, is about bringing the world closer together. Our ultimate vision is supersonic flight for all passengers on all routes."
The Overture's engine will be the Symphony, which was designed with special attention to noise, one of the Concorde's biggest disadvantages: "It must be efficient in supersonic flights, but also silent for takeoff and landing," commented Scholl.
The Symphony engine was designed to run entirely on SAF, Sustainable Aviation Fuel, a type of aviation fuel whose production methods promise to reduce carbon emissions by up to 80%, according to IATA, the International Air Transport Association. Boom is also committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. All of these sustainability purposes will be assessed in the certification process.
The aircraft is being designed to carry between 64 and 80 passengers, at a speed of Mach 1.7 which represents 2,100 km/hour or 1,304 miles/hour, at an altitude of 60,000 feet or 18,000 meters. It is projected that Overture will be able to travel between London and New York in around three and a half hours, cutting travel time in half compared to traditional commercial flights.
The Overture Supersonic factory is under construction, starting in January 2023, in Greensboro, North Carolina, USA, at the Piedmont Triad International Airport . With a significant portion of the exterior building constructed, the Overture Superfactory continues to take shape and remains on track for completion in 2024. The factory will include a final assembly line, a testing facility and a customer delivery center.
Boom has been building the campus in sections, focusing first on the final assembly line, where it will have the capacity to produce up to 33 Overture aircraft per year, which could grow to 66 per year with the addition of a second line. Overture Superfactory will occupy approximately 150,000 square feet, equivalent to 13,935 m² with an additional 24,000 square feet, equivalent to 2,229 m² of office space.
"Our vision for Piedmont Triad International Airport is to become the center of aviation innovation ," said Kevin Baker, Executive Director of the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority. "Boom is positioned to define the next century of progress in air travel, and we are proud to see its vision taking shape in our backyard with the Overture Superfactory in the Triad."
Boom says it will bring more than 1,750 jobs to North Carolina by 2030, expanding to a total of more than 2,400 jobs by 2032. North Carolina economists estimate the Overture Superfactory will grow the state's economy by at least $32 .3 billion in 20 years.
To date, three airlines have placed purchase orders for the Overture Supersonic: United Airlines, American Airlines and Japan Airlines, with a total of 130 orders.
Sources:
ABC11. Boom wants supersonic plane travel for everyone - but can it deliver? Available at: https://abc11.com/boom-supersonic-airplane-overture/13592668/> Accessed on: 24.fev.2024.
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CNN. PRISCO, Jacopo. Boom wants supersonic plane travel for everyone — but can it deliver? Available at: < https://www.cnn.com/travel/boom-supersonic-ambitions-scn/index.html > Accessed on: 24.Feb.2024.
G1 PORTAL. Discover Overture, a supersonic plane project that will have twice the speed of current aircraft . Available at: < https://g1.globo.com/inovacao/noticia/2022/08/17/conheca-o-overture-projeto-de-aviao-supersonico-que-tera-o-dobro-da-velocidade- das-aeronaves-atuais.ghtml > Accessed on: 24.dec.2024>.
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